Volantis
Volantis is one of the principal cities of western Essos, and considered by many to be the greatest of the nine Free Cities. It is ruled by a Triarchy of elected officials which make decisions on behalf the city in its best interests, as well as those of the settlements within Volantene territory, namely Sar Mell, Volon Therys, Valysar and Selhorys. Layout The city of Volantis is a city of two parts, and thus not dissimilar from the Free City of Norvos in this sense. The eastern part of the city is home those of the Blood of Old Valyria, and its palaces, courtyards, towers, temples, cloisters, bridges, and cellars are surrounded by the Black Walls, formed of fused dragonstone. The western districts are newer, and provides life to all other residents and visitors to the city. The two parts are joined by the Long Bridge. The Eastern City - Old Volantis * The Black Walls - Built by the Valyrians to protect their new western outpost, the Black Walls are an oval of fused dragonstone, so wide that during the annual celebrations of the creation of the city, six chariots, each pulled by four horses, can ride abreast. They are nearly two hundred feet high, and only those of the Old Blood, or invited directly by them, may enter. Within is the part of the city called Old Volantis by its residents. * The Palace of the Triarchs - A colossal monolith of marble and fused dragonstone, the Palace of the Triarchs is amongst the most impressive construction in a city of marvels. Guarded by the fearsome Tiger Cloaks, a slave army marked with green stripes across their cheeks, and helms shaped to bare the visage of their namesake, the Palace opens its doors to only a select few, for matters to be brought up to the Triarchs are often done at the palaces of the separate parties, depending on the nature of the request. Carved into both the exterior and interior of the tower are deeds of the past elected of the city, the tales of war and conquest, peace and trade shaped into the marble and streaks of gold that have been worked into the stone. * The Tiger Den - Within the Black Walls, not far from the Palace of the Triarchs, the Tiger Den is the headquarters of the Tiger party of Volantis, and has been since the city first began elections. Whilst the construction of the Den has changed many times over the years, with many Triarchs seeking to improve upon the works of their predecessors, one thing has persisted throughout, the statues. Each Tiger is immortalised in stone upon election, and an additional stripe added to their neck with each subsequent re-election. Some, like Horonno and Belar have many marks on their neck, whereas many remain smooth, untouched by the chisel. * The Elephant Hall - Carved from pale-grey stone, the building of the Elephant Party is marked and shaped in such a way that the bricks themselves are not dissimilar from the skin of the beast from which they take their name. At the entrance is a colossal statue of one such creatures, hewn from a single block near the height of ten men. The building and its contents displays brazen eccentricity, with wealth brought with decades and centuries of trade creating rooms of lavish decoration, from exotic animal furs and woods, statues shaped from precious metals depicting the history of those elected and feasting rooms capable of containing many of the great Halls of Westerosi castles with room to spare. Although few are permitted entry, those that have glimpsed all that the Elephant Hall contains report that even the bolts and nails of the doors and walls are shaped from gold, rather than iron or steel. * The Temples of Old Valyria - While the Freehold of Old Valyria was long ago claimed by the Doom, the gods of the Valyrian pantheon remain, in some part. Construction of black stone carved into fanciful shapes depicting men, beasts and other beings alike, the Temples of Old Valyria remain popular amongst some of the Old Blood, who place coins and other offerings at the shrines to Syrax and Vhagar, Balerion and Arrax, as well as innumerable more. * The Temple of the Lord of Light - Located on the eastern side of the city, but outside the Black Walls, the Temple of the Lord of Light is dedicated to the god R'hllor, the Lord of Light. The temple is protected by a private army of slave soldiers known as the Fiery Hand, and led by a High Priest. The temple is an enormity of pillars, steps, buttresses, bridges, domes, and towers flowing into one another as if they had all been chiselled from one colossal rock. A hundred hues of red, yellow, gold, and orange meet and meld in the temple walls, dissolving one into the other like clouds at sunset. The Long Bridge Supported by a series of massive piers, the construction started by the Triarch Vhalaso, called the Munificent, spans the Rhoyne, connecting Old Volantis to New. Named one of the Wonders Made by Man by Lomas Longstrider, the Long Bridge is a creation of fused stone, like that of the Black Walls. The Long Bridge's gateway at its eastern end is an arch of black stone carved with sphinxes, manticores, dragons and other strange beasts. The road is barely wide enough for two carts to pass side by side. Buildings rise on either side of the roadway. In the centre of the bridge the hands of thieves and the heads of executed criminals are displayed by Volantene spearmen decorated with green tiger stripes. Buildings rise on both sides of the bridge, including: shops, temples, taverns, inns, cyvasse parlours, and brothels. Most are three to four stories tall and each floor extending farther than the one beneath it. The topmost floors almost reach each other. Customers can buy almost anything in the shops on the Long Bridge. Merchants include weavers, lacemakers, glassblowers, candlemakers, and fishwives. Goldsmiths and spicers keep guards at their doors. The Western City - New Volantis * Fishermonger's Square - Found near the western end of the Long Bridge and near the Harbour of Volantis, the Fishermonger's Square is a large plaza where fishmongers come to sell their wares. As busy in the night as the day, there is cod, sailfish, sardines, barrels of mussels and clams for sale in the square, as well as eels, turtles and casks filled with crabs, lobsters and shellfish. Vendors sell stews and pies flavoured with spices and vegetables, and mummers perform for the attention and coin of passers-by. * Armourer's Street - Considered by many to be the Volantene equivalent of the Street of Steel, the Armourer's Street pre-dates its supposed Westerosi counterpart by nearly a millennia and a half. Located at the waterside so that both the waters of the Rhoyne and Summer Sea can be used to cool their forges as necessary, it is home to some of the finest blacksmiths in Essos not associated with the Mott Family or Qohor generally. * The Merchant's House - The Merchant's House is the finest and largest inn in Volantis. It is located on Fishmonger’s Square. It is a four story monstrosity that squats amongst the warehouses, brothels, and taverns of the waterside. The Merchant's House is the first choice for shippers, captains, and merchantmen. Traders from Oldtown and King's Landing mingle with their counterparts from Braavos and Pentos and Myr, with hairy Ibbenese, pale skinned voyagers from Qarth, coal-black Summer Islanders in feathered cloaks, even masked shadowbinders from Asshai by the Shadow. There are cheap rooms on the fourth floor, iron rings are set in the walls for chaining up one’s slaves. The tavern is famous for its locks, which are as secure as a gaol. * The Crimson Silks - Found on the opposite side of the river from the Temple of the Lord of Light, almost a mirror as a construction covered it fabrics of carmine, scarlet and ruby, the Crimson Silks is the most popular brothel in Volantis, and is frequented by residents of the city, both freeholders and the Old Blood, although the latter often transport their intended pillowslaves to their manses inside the Black Walls than make the journey themselves, as well as the visitors of the city. Behind the main building, nearly two dozen small pillowhouses exist, each dedicated to the training and teaching of those that will one day be amongst the finest in the Free Cities, although not as famed of those from Yunkai, to the east. Each floor of the Crimson Silks serves a different nature of customer, and as one ascends the building's eight floors, the price increases significantly. * Mahouts' Courtyard - The actual elephants of Volantis serve two distinct purposes, and must be trained accordingly. Most will serve only as a means of transportation for those that see walking as a means of travelling for those beneath their standing, and will have their grey hides covered in vibrant paints of green, blue and yellow. At times of election, it is not uncommon for the elephants to be decorated with the colours of the Families of the Old Blood seeking election. Those beasts that show particular aptitude and intelligence are selected for service in the forces of the Free City, and have proved to be a formidable foe to any army relying upon horses and other cavalry. Atop each elephant a trio of archers can loose over three dozen arrows between them every minute, making the Volantene Elephant cavalry a challenging military unit to any enemy. * The Wyvern's Tower - One of the few constructions of dragonstone on the western side of the city, the Wyvern's Tower first served as a primary look-out post for attackers sailing or marching from the Disputed Lands to the west, or the Summer Sea to the south. As new Volantis has proliferated across the western bank of the Rhoyne however, it now serves a new purpose. The Wyvern's Tower is now the home and headquarters of the Tiger Cloaks, the elite city guard of Volantis. In the courtyards at its base, men are trained in the use of short spear, sword, shield, bow and axe, and within the tower itself are the quarters dedicated to eating, cleaning and sleeping. From the top of the tower, guardsmen watch over the city, ready to respond to any disturbance to the peace. The Harbour The harbour of Volantis is one of the greatest boasts of the Volantene people, who claim that is it deep enough for all the hundred isles of Braavos to be placed within it, and none would peek from the surface. As well as being very deep, the harbour is very wide, spanning both sides of the estuary of the Rhoyne, a river so wide that ships sailing down the centre may struggle to see the shores to either side. Although exceptions do exist, generally the wharves and ports on the eastern bank are of a finer quality to their western counterparts, and maintained more thoroughly by the slaves assigned to such a task. The quays closest to the Black Walls themselves are of particularly fine craftsmanship, with roads of marble and sandstone leading visitors and those returning home to entrances in the Black Walls directly from the waterfront. Ships from across the Known World call port at Volantis, the city serving as a stopping point between the Free Cities and Westeros to the west, and the nations of the Far East such as Qarth, Yi-Ti and Asshai-by-the-Shadow. Particularly common in the harbours on both sides of the city are merchant cogs flying the golden flagship sigil of the Balarr Family of Pryr, whose holds are filled with spices, wines and fabrics for distribution across the Known World in hunt for profit. Recent History In 232AC, in response to the growing presence of the Church of Starry Wisdom in the western Free Cities, most noticeably Pentos and the newly formed town of Mantalos, the Triarchs sent a force to sack the town, following pressure from the followers of the Lord of Light, who saw the unfamiliar and supposedly sinister religion as a direct threat to their own. As the High Priest of the Temple proclaimed that followers of the Church were servants of the Great Other, the Triarchs found themselves forced to respond, and hired the Company of the Cat to destroy the church to appease the residents of the city. The skirmish in the northern Disputed Lands came to be known as the Clash of Fire and Stars, and made a name for the Brazen Titans, a previously unknown company that would go onto to play a role in the War of Unification. In 258AC, the tiger Triarch Belar Aertaris marshalled for the expansion of the city's territories northwards, towards the ruined city of Essaria, called the Lost Free City by some, but Vaes Khadokh by most, the name meaning the City of Corpses. The city had been sacked by the Dothraki during the Century of Blood after the Doom, and the prospect of control of the strategic position of the city drove Belar to rally the strength of Volantis to reclaim what had been lost. The elephants at the time did not directly oppose the action, Innen Galtigar seeing the value of the city for trade with the east, and Malanos Naraelor too old and sick to issue concerns on the matter. But the expedition was doomed before it started, for it took nearly three years for preparations to be made, after which Belar's eagerness began to wain. Wishing not to seem weak and a provider of false promises to those that he hoped would re-elect him in the coming moons, the tiger Triarch led the march north himself, travelling up the Rhoyne and Selhoru before reaching the ruins. Further misfortune occurred when the army of warriors, masons and carpenters stumbled across a khalasar, lead by Khal Viqallo, a young Khal eager to prove his strength. The Khal set upon the Volantenes, slaughtering with arrow, whip and arakh. Falling into a deep blood-rage, he drove his khalasar south before the warmth had finished leaving the body of Belar Aertaris and his men, seeking out the source of the men. As much of the strength of the city had marched north with the Triarch, the city found itself largely undefended, allowing the Khal to strike at the city with sword and flame. Although the damage was quickly repaired after the Dothraki had fought and claimed their fill, the name of Khal Viqallo still lingers as one of reverence and fear within the city. For the first time since the Rise of the Elephants following the Century of Blood, a majority of the seats of the Triarchy are held by members of the Tiger Party. Category:Volantis Category:Free Cities Category:Essos Category:City